The first two and a half terms of this school year have gone fairly smoothly, as far as the actual school work goes. Sure we have had meltdowns trying to get dressed, drama over the fancy dress ball and a few mornings we didn’t think we’d get there at all.
At our parent teacher interview at the end of term one A’s teacher was full of praise for him, she had no concerns. He had mastered the art of bottling up his frustrations until I picked him up in the afternoons. Term two came and went, A was doing so well the teacher didn’t even request an interview. Come term three and we start “have a go writing.” A is in Prep, for kids turning 5 by 30 June of the school year. For most kids it is their first year at school. For A it is the second as he did kindy last year.
“Have a go writing” is where the children are asked to have a go at writing a sentence. They have learned about 40 sight words and are now learning to sound out words. The task is to write a sentence about whatever they like, or sometimes the teacher gives them a topic…. Like “My favourite colour is…” When they get to a word they don’t know they are just expected to have a go at writing it. It doesn’t matter if it’s wrong. As long as the sentence makes sense and they can read it back to the teacher that’s fine.
Sounds simple enough? Not for A. His teacher pulled me aside one morning as I took A into his classroom. She was concerened about his anxiety level, and how stressed he was getting. A has suffered from anxiety his whole life. But this was the first time it was causing an academic issue. He was getting so worked up that his fingers were shaking from gripping the pencil so tightly and his shoulders were tense and hunched over. …continue reading

Putting your child in a daycare is a huge worry for many working parents. My husband and I were fortunate to find a great daycare to enroll my son in when he was the ripe young age of 3 months. It was amazing. He was happy, we were happy, and all was well with the world.

Fast forward 2 years later. P is now 2 years  9 months old. He has SPD.  He is a handful on the good days, and about 100 handfuls on the bad.  Things have become real. Our happy little bubble popped, and we now realize that what once was a brilliant daycare, can no longer fit the needs of our son, who needs extra attention. It all started when P started having meltdowns during the transition times at daycare. Sure, all 2 year old’s have meltdowns, right? All 2 year old’s can be defiant and bossy, so what makes my 2 year old different? Oh, there is the table and chair throwing (the 50 pound table). There is the pushing over bookcases. There is the chasing his teacher around the room because he is so angry that the only thing he can do to release that anger is to kick her.   There is the fear and worry that my two year old boy may hurt another child, not because he wants to, but because he doesn’t understand. There is so much more. …continue reading